Merlin, the King of Dragons and Wyverns
by hawthorneash13
Summary: What happens when a navel regimant of Arthurs gets captured by Sewrt, who have allied themselves with Morgana? He goes to evauluate the situation with Leon, Gwain, Percival, and, Merlin. When they run into Aithusa, the white dragon Merlin hatched, what will happen? Willtheyfindoutthatdragonsar entsavages? AndwhenArthurallieshimselfwi ththedragonsandwyverns,howwillCamelot react?
1. Chapter 1

**Okay! This is my first Merlin fanfic, so be kind but i welcome CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM Also, VERY IMPORTANT, my Merlin is a mix of the actual legend Merlin, the TV show Merlin, and the Merlin in some books i read. The same with some of the other characters; i just a have different P.O.V's about some characters. That DOES NOT MEAN THAT THIS IS A TOTALLY UNFAMILIAR FANFIC... its just, different. REVIEW!**

There are days Merlin just wants to lie in bed and ignore the world. Then there are days when he wants to strangle Arthur. This is both of those times. Standing before the King, he gaped, mouth open and eyes wide,

"You what?!" He said in alarm. Arthur looked a little uneasy, rubbing the back of his head.

"Please Merlin; I don't need to be yelled at by my _servant_. I said we were going to travel to the coast of Nah'radf to collect our captured naval regiment." He said in exasperation. Merlin worked his jaw up and down several times before speaking again,

"B-but that's where Morgana is rumored to be! You know of the 'Arthur's bane' going around there!" There was also another reason why, Kilgharrah was in the area, and couldn't move because Aithusa was in a delicate part in her growth. Her wings were finally developing, and The Great Dragon had said that it was the most painful and draining part of dragon development, oddly enough. You would expect the fire to. Anyway, back to the story. Merlin walked slowly to pick up the kings clothes, while Arthur went to his desk to write a reply to the Queen of Haer'th.

"Don't tell me your scared Merlin." Arthur teased, not quite seeing Merlin's distress. Merlin grunted,

"I just don't want you to get yourself killed. I don't need to save your arse all the time." Merlin shot back. Arthur sputtered,

"When have you ever saved my life?"

"Oh, let's see, the time your goblet was poisoned and you didn't know. So I drank it to prove to you that it was." Merlin spat. Arthur sighed,

"I then had to go save your life." They both rolled their eyes at the same time.

"We leave immediately; call the Round table to meet. I will inform them of this. While I do that, gather my bags and ready the horses. Merlin, by the way," He started, standing and walking to the door, "do cover your face, I wouldn't want to frighten horses." Sighing, Merlin attended to his chores, trying to shove his heavy thoughts aside.

After everything was said and done, Merlin mounted his dark brown horse, trotting up to walk behind Arthur. He still felt uneasy, but he had contacted Kilgharrah with his mind and informed him of the possible danger. Merlin was unusually quiet, much to the observation Gwaine, who asked him if he was alright. Merlin said that he was just a bit under the weather. They trudged through miles of valleys and forests and swamps, the ocean of Tear Yuar'ah expanding before them. Merlin had never seen the ocean, a body of water this huge. It was obvious that some of the knights shared this new experience. It was so _monumental, _so vast and expanding, its gray blue waters occasionally dotted with a white cap. It took Merlin's breath away, that something so huge existed. He looked from coast to coast, wondering if it was some sort of trick. Arthur smirked,

"It gets bigger. I was on a ship when I was twelve and we went out to sea… It was all around; I couldn't see land at all for days." With that, he pushed his horse forward, jogging to the barrack that would house them. Finally able to move, Merlin followed, his horse taking careful steps.

"Bloody hell." Was all Percival could say. While Leon was saying something along the lines of 'I missed the ocean.' Merlin grinned; he was jealous of the Great Dragon's domain. A rustling echoed through the forest, stopping the men. The branches bounced, the horses reared and threw their riders, galloping off to god knows were. Scrambling up, all the armed men drew their swords, forming a circle, heads snapping to every direction the noise presented itself. Then, the rustling stopped, and when they thought they were safe, it started again in one area. Merlin readied himself for whatever creature stepped out of the woods. A white creature walked out on weak legs. Merlin's breath caught; it was Aithusa.

Arthur stared at the dragon in shock, his sword point dropping. The dragon's head perked, looking straight at Merlin. Slowly, she craned her head, dropping to a low bow. Merlin's heart clenched as everyone turned to look at him. Utter confusion showed on all their faces, including the young dragon lords. Aithusa rose, looking at each person in the eyes, testing to see if they were safe to be in her lords presence.

"Greetings." She said simply. Arthur paled in shock.

"Y-you can talk?" He sputtered.

"Of course. I am a creature of magic. Though I question why my lord refuses to reveal himself." She said, cocking her head to the distance.

"Is that why you bowed?" Gwaine stuttered. She looked at him as if he were stupid, then grimaced, bending her long neck and letting loose a loud growl of frustration and pain,

"Damn wings." She muttered, flexing them. The where twice the length of her body, but they were designed for speed, being thinner than wider. You could see bones slowly working their way through her thin wing skin, one tearing through the edge of her wing. She snapped her jaws, a puff of smoke slithering through her teeth.

"Who's your dragon lord?" Arthur pressed. Merlin's heart felt like it was going to explode.

"My wings are finally developing. You know, it's very painful. Even worse than when the fire comes, though I'm starting to develop that too. Shouldn't be to long. Kilgharrah said I was developing pretty fast considering I'm only 6 months old." She ignored him, sitting down and stretching her neck. Despite Merlin's nervousness, he had to keep some laughter down. To treat the king like that... he wished.

"Wait, weren't the dragons killed during the Purge?" Gwaine asked. Aithusa's eyes hardened; she stood and walked right up to him, putting her nose right up to his. On impulse, Leon slammed his blade right on her back. It shattered, only adding to her annoyance. But she did not move her eyes from Gwaine's. She spoke some words in dragon tongue, and Gwaine wrinkled his brow in confusion, fear in his eyes. Anger crinkled his mouth, and loneliness echoed his features. She snapped her head away, snorting. Gwaine fell to his knees, tears in his eyes. Arthur rushed over him, holding him up,

"What did you do to him?"


	2. Chapter 2

**To my readers:Thank you guys so much! And for the people mentioning that Aithusa isn't all babyish its one: I imagine Kilgharrah is strict, and two: she gets more lovey to Merlin in…this chapter? I don't remember. Anyway, thank you guys so much! Constructive criticism is always welcomed!**

"Showed him the dragons point of view during the Purge."

"But… But you weren't alive then."

"Unlike humans, dragons can share memories. We can also share them with our Lords." She looked into all their eyes, lingering over Merlin's,

"I should mention that the village down there is burnt to a crisp. Not by us; no, by our something else. So, since you have no lodgings, you may come with me, unless you still stand by your prejudices." She cocked her head to the side, listening. She rolled her eyes, mumbled, then turned her attention back to them.

"I have a message from Kilgharrah: 'Arthur, I have the identity of your bane. And I know what happened to your men. Come with no intent to do harm and I will tell you. Also, I have something to discuss with all of you. You don't really have a choice; you're in my territory and this land is filled with creatures with skin like ours.' So, yes, that's it. I'm going now; follow if you like. We also have fresh food and water." She called over her shoulder. Arthur looked to his men. All the knights, Percival, Gwaine, Leon and himself were shocked, but Merlin looked more pained. Arthur didn't know what to do; this could be a trick or a trap. Dragons! They were to supposed to be all dead. If this dragon was only 6 months old, she had to be hatched by a dragon lord. But the last egg had been destroyed, unless… it was taken. But how could someone get access to it? It would have been one of his knights or would betray him like this?! Arthur needed to know who this dragon lord was, and why the dragon kept looking at Merlin… Arthur sheathed his sword, his men looking at him in uncertainty.

"Are you sure you want to follow it?" Percival asked, Merlin looked like he wanted to say something but held his tongue.

"Like the other dragon said, we have no choice. I need to know what this beast knows. Then I can slay it." Arthur said calmly. Gwaine looked at Merlin with sad, yet guarded eyes; knowing the death of a magical creature would crush him, since he had magic. Maybe that's why the dragon had looked at him so much… The dragons tail had disappeared behind a tree by the time they caught up, puffing and panting. There was a crashing, a squeal, then a squelching sound. The men rushed to see what had occurred.

They found Aithusa, blood on her snout, standing on a large lizard pig horse looking creature. She snorted, getting the green blood out of her nostrils. She looked at them with her blazing blue eyes,

"Dinner." She grunted, grabbing the thing by the neck and dragging it backwards. They followed warily, whispering about how obscured this was. Following a dragon! That was asking for death, but for some reason they trusted this creature, especially Gwaine. He had seen, felt, and experienced what the dragons had, and he had no hate for them any longer. They were far wiser than any creature known to men. It took about 20 minutes before they reached a high stone cliff, with a sheer wall reaching upward. Aithusa set the meat down, and roared, her tongue curling like in a yawn while doing so. Merlin felt a rush of pride or the creature, she had grown so much… He wished he could have visited her, they had conversed with their minds when they met. Merlin begged her not to tell them what he was, and she replied with 'Father!' She had good control over her emotions. She then sat down, dizziness circling her head.

"He should be here soon. Just a warning; Kilgharrah is fully grown, quick to temper, but wise and kind. And, he's also the Great Dragon." She finished as The Great Dragon emerged from the top of the cliff, looking down with his large gold eyes. He jumped from the cliff, gliding about 300 feet to greet them. He landed with a loud grunt, and was bombarded with the little dragon, climbing all other him and resting on his head, chirping in dragon tongue. He shook his head, trying to shake Aithusa, but she held firm.

"Y-you. I thought I-I killed you." Arthur stuttered. Kilgharrah looked down,

"Do I look dead, young king?" He asked slowly.

"N-No." Arthur mumbled. He had no idea how to react any more.

"Gwaine, Percival, Leon, Arthur... Merlin." The dragon stated.

"How do you know our names?" Percival challenged.

"Come. I will have to take you up, so get over your fears of heights now. I will be back." He said, taking the carcass in one claw and Aithusa clinging to him, he jumped into the air, marveling the men with his dragon beauty.

"This is the most insane thing I have done." Arthur said. Everyone agreed, even Merlin. Moments later, Kilgharrah returned.

"I do suggest that tearing out a scale will not be good for you." He warned.

"Who will come first?" He asked. Everyone stood still, so long that Merlin grew tired and walked forward, much to the amusement of the dragon.

"Merlin!" Arthur called. Turning in exasperation, Merlin replied,

"What?"

"If I may interject, humans taste terrible, so if your afraid I will eat him, you would be wrong." And with that, Merlin mounted the dragon. He sat on his shoulders, and the knights and king all silently agreed, he looked completely natural on a dragon. They were launched into the air, Kilgharrah rearing to his back feet then pushing off, flapping his wings. Once they were on the cliff top, they both broke out laughing.

"Merlin, I think you stunned them down there." The Great Dragon said as Merlin slipped off.

"Yeah. I'm going to have to tell them aren't i?" He asked sadly. The dragon's smile slipped, answering his question.

"When should I tell them?" Merlin asked

"While I talk to them." Before Kilgharrah could say anymore to his lord, Aithusa jumped from the shadows and tackled Merlin.

"Father!" She squealed, digging her now clean snort in his chest as he fell on his back. He laughed, patting her head. He could see horns coming in, which he touched gently.

"Your growing horns!" He exclaimed, much the to young dragons happiness. The nubs were starting to curve away from the back of her head, and they were as white as the rest of her. Kilgharrah went to collect the others. She nuzzled his neck affectionately. He rubbed her long scaly neck, feeling the hard cool texture under his fingers. She finally got off of him, but sat next to him like a loyal dog. Just as the dragon returned. Merlin panicked, not knowing what quite what to do. Who was it on the dragon's back? Landing, Gwaine got off, still not having seen Merlin yet. The dragon dived to get another knight.

"That was a rus-"He started until he saw Merlin. He drew his sword, and to the un-informed Aithusa, she got up, placing both fore legs over Merlin's chest and growling,

"Away from father!" She exclaimed. Merlin whispered some words to her, and she backed off, but the damage was done. Gwain was pale, the sword clattered to the ground, his face rigid shock.

"Father?" He asked. Merlin stood,

"Um. Yeah. I, uh, hatched her."

"B-but o-only dragon lords can do that." He said, his eyes widening when he realized what he said.

"You're a-a dragon lord. How the hell did that happen?!" Merlin was about to answer when Kilgharrah returned, having all the knights and the king on his back.

"I... never.. .again." Percival said, clutching his stomach. Arthur slid off, trying to understand the situation and what he was doing. Leon opened his eyes (which were closed during flight), going over to sit down on a rock.

"Aithusa, get the _Fer'uk_ ready. I'll cook it since you humans cant digest raw meat." Kilgharrah said

"How very kind." Merlin said sarcastically. The knights didn't notice that Gwaine was just staring into space, but they did notice that Merlin was the only one of them that seemed at ease with the dragons. Aithusa cut the meat, getting the tenderest bits for the humans, since the rest of the beast was hard muscle that she even had a hard time chewing. Once was all cooked and eaten, Kilgharrah talked with them, sitting around a fire he had made, Kilgharrah told them of the rebellions, the troops he had seen coming in and out of the border, Morgana's movements and where he last saw Arthur's men. Merlin was the one sitting closest to the dragon, and everyone was talking about it, except Gwaine. Kilgharrah cleared his throat, catching everyone's attention.

"You wonder about the identity of our lord. Am I correct? I will tell you; he is the most powerful sorcerer since the beginning of this land. Morgana fears him, and he is wise. And he has saved all of your lives at least once. And Camelot, also. His name, Emerys. " Silence hung over the crowd. Arthur tried to process what the dragon told him. They knew the name, not who Emerys was. Merlin shifted uncomfortably.

"He is here right at this moment." The wise dragon said, striking a range of emotions in each man.

"Who is Emerys? Is he to be trusted?" Arthur asked tightly. The dragon grinned,

"You already trust him. He serves you with all his loyalty, and would die for you."


	3. Chapter 3

**Okay, I edited Gwaine's name! If I missed any, point it out and I'll go fix it. Thanks!**

"Who is he?" Arthur asked again, more insistently. The dragon looked at Merlin, who spoke next, clutching his knees, but looking Arthur in the eyes.

"Me. I am Emerys, the last dragon lord."

There could have been a fire raging in their very faces; they could have been soaking wet and struck by lightning, but they wouldn't have noticed. Arthur tried to laugh it off, but the seriousness in Merlin's gaze was unquestionable.

"Prove it." Arthur whispered. Merlin looked up sadly, his eyes showed all of his wisdom for the first time, showed the things he's seen and felt. All of it, in his eyes, his grief, his anger, regret, hate, love, respect, loyalty, happiness. He looked at the fire, eyes turning bright yellow as the magic coursed outward. The fire turned blue, and then spun in a circle slowly, leaving the ground. It exploded outward, turning into birds as it did. _He didn't even have to recite a spell_. Arthur thought with dread. Leon jumped up,

"No! It's not true! You can't be… a sorcerer!" Leon spat, running at him with his sword. Merlin sat there sadly not even moving.

"Stop!"Arthur called as Leon's blade swung towards Merlin's neck, which still hadn't moved. Just as the metal was about to bite flesh Merlin held up his hand, the sword clanging into it. He gripped the blade looking at Leon in the eye. Any other man would have been bleeding; but we have established that he is not any other man. A red-white rash grew up the blade, burning the metal to a liquid. Leon stumbled back, looking at what remained. It was only hilt now. The metal bubbled on Merlin's flesh, which he flung on the ground like he was drying his hand.

"Sorry about your sword." Merlin mumbled. Aithusa trotted over, not caring about the tense atmosphere. She curled up next to Merlin, setting her head on his lap. He stroked her nose absentmindedly, his mark leaving silver designs on her snout.

"You've lied to me about everything. What have you lied to me about, Merlin?" Arthur asked calmly. Merlin shifted uneasily,

"Arthur, I was born with magic, I did not have a choice in it." He went on to explain all he did, what he had seen and apologized for lying, that he would have told Arthur. But, as he did this, he stopped, looked Arthur in the eyes, and spoke,

"Arthur, I lied because, whether you expect it or not-" That is when Kilgharrah cut in,

"Merlin, listen." He said, looking up, eyes searching. Merlin did as instructed, his eyes turning yellow as his senses sharpened. A noise in the distance caught his attention, he stood, walking to the edge of the cliff.

"_Hert'a ler fgueh the?_" He muttered in dragon tongue. He felt the knights and king behind him.

"What did he say?" One of them whispered. Suddenly, Merlin's eyes widened in alarm.

"_Weft lagh Shtess jeudk Swert merft all the weas!" _He exclaimed, his voice rasping to a loud growl that echoed the lands. His eyes returned to normal, and he held his head as the men backed away.

"I just called all the wyrns to congregate here." He said calmly. He didn't want to tell them what he had really heard and seen.

"What makes you think they'll come?" Percival stuttered. Kilgharrah stepped from behind, looking out,

"When Arthur calls is servants; they come. In essence, Merlin is a king. A king of dragons were as Arthur is a king of men." These words rippled across the group. Aithusa walked up,

"Father, will Ket come to?" She asked. Merlin grinned,

"Yes, Ket will come."

"Father? What the bloody hell?!" Arthur gaped. Merlin turned, his skin molting and hardening. His entire form shifting. In moments, a black dragon stood where Merlin was. Its horns curved towards its face, and then outward. Another set curved from the back of its head, upward. A third curved from the bottom jaw, flattening widely then stretching toward its shoulders. These horns looked like some gothic crown. Thorn shaped spikes traced its jaw and shoulders, also down its back. Its tail had a diamond spear head, spikes sticking out of shaft and curving dangerously toward the end point. Exhaling a large breath, the regal dragon opened its eyes, revealing one burning yellow, and the other electric blue. A mass of twisting wyrns rose behind the dragon, landing in rows of scale and wing silently.

"Does this answer your question?" The voice grumbled. There was no mistaking that voice; it was Merlin's. If they had been in shock before, this drove them over the edge. They were now officially shell shocked. Kilgharrah bowed his head to the dragon. This dragon was much bigger than Kilgharrah, and his wings were that of bird. He turned to address his cousins, speaking in dragon tongue,

"_Ish yoonga fer haew near smad Kew! Mewd anc, ajae derft bowla enc, ajw bead ret!" _The dragon roared. All wyrns bowed, much to the distaste of the dragon. It told them to rise, at least that's what Arthur thought it did. A creature was flying from a distance, flapping its wings, the rising sun silhouetting it. The dragon turned to address the men,

"Hello? Yes, I turned into a dragon. I can do that. Oh, _Zer lat._" The shock fell away from their faces. The dragon had taken away their shock. It snorted, a puff of blue smoke dissipating in the air.

"How?" Gwain squeaked.

"Well, I should be able to address the species in the species skin." Merlin murmured. A wyrn walked up, speaking to the dragon lord.

"_Wed Lut beiss fee keer lewear." _It informed, walking away. Merlin growled deeply, unsetting the men.

"What is it?" Arthur asked.

"A subspecies of the _Dewred _has allied itself with Morgana. And there heading to Camelot."Without missing a beat, he continued. "Arthur, I will have my forces allied with yours. If you choose. If you doubt our size, I assure you that there are plenty more creatures. My title may be Dragon lord, but I command every magical creature on this land. With some restrictions, of course. The _Sewrt_ are pretty much the stupidest creatures on earth, so no one can really command them. I wonder how Morgana got them…" Merlin finished. Arthur thought about it. _I still can't believe my servant is a dragon. But, if what he says is true, we need to protect Camelot. But how will the people take dragons and wyrns and gods know what else? Why should I trust him? He lied to me for more than 5 years about who he really was. And yet… I still trust him._ Arthur had to yell at himself mentally to talk through his frayed nerves.

"Fine. Merlin, this is the strangest day of my life. What a scandal, the servant who was really a king. What should I call you now? Merlin or something else?" Arthur asked sadly. Merlin grinned his usually grin.

"You may call me Your royal highness of greatness and awesomeness." He joked.

"Your still a arse, you know." Arthur laughed tightly.

"Yes. I know. You can call me what you've always called me. Merlin is as good as any title. We must hurry then, if we are to make it. The _Sewrt_ are a huge subspecies. They are literally everywhere. They can hide very well. That's why I'm proposing that each of your knights mount a wyrn in battle. Also, when we get to Camelot, I would prefer you don't tell them who I am. It would cause too much confusion. Lastly, I am hungry, I will now hunt. I will be back soon." And with that, Merlin took to the skies, flying with such grace the breath caught in the men's throats. Arthur grinned.

"He's always thinking about his stomach." Arthur said just as the creature that was flying from the distance landed on the edge of the cliff. It was a green color, with a gold shine. It's horns were that of a giant stag, and it didn't have any front legs, like the wyrns. Instead, it used the fingers on the wing to walk. It's legs were highly muscled, and it had only three large claws on each foot. This fierce looking creature was then pounced upon by Aithusa, who was screeching,

"Ket! Ket! I haven't seen you in forever!" She squealed. The creature grinned and touched his nose to her head.

"Hello little one." His voice incredibly deep. He turned to acknowledged the men.

"Hello. I am Ket. How are you?" He asked politely. Arthur stared at the creature, trying to figure out what he was. In the process, he thought, _These creatures are so much like human, He is a king of magical creatures; he has magic, yet he is still humane and kind. Can a soul transcend one body to another?_

**Okay, i seriously diverged from the storyline, and i will conitinue to do so. Hope you like me turning Merlin though. Wouldnt that be so cool if he did that infront of Arthur during the show? OMG, i am such a dork. Anyway... I will update often. yeah, go frolic and review, my fathful readers!**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: I know it says that they don't know what Ket is; he is a wyvern lord, you can deduce this its just mild confusion because of what is going on with the knights and he king. Also, he doesn't look exactly like a wyvern. 'Cause of the horns, size, and color, basically.**

"Uh…I don't want to be rude, but what are you? You look similar to a dragon, but your not, are you?" One of the men asked. Ket chuckled,

"Merlin is a dragon lord. Think of me as a wyvern lord. But since dragons have long been established as the dominate species of our family after the War of Fire and Wing. This was before men came to the lands."

" Tell us more of this War of Fire and Wing." A man asked.

"The War of Fire and Wing, it began with the two breeds, dragon and wyvern, living in peace. We had fought together, even bred together. Until a prince; we may be savages in your eyes, but we had a monarchy and we built great castles in the mountains, came to power. He was a wyvern, and though we were at peace and shared plenty, there were prejudices. Alas, an assignation was attempted. A dragon by the name of Grell was the murderer. This sparked many rebellions and battles, which grew into war. And, before you ask, yes, wyverns and dragons shared the thrown. It was long, about 100 years, with the survivors making an agreement: The dragons would be dominant, the wyverns would serve them. This was designed to end conflict between the breeds for the remainder of our existence, if the two didn't mate or share; there wouldn't be too much friction. My mother was a general in the war." He said.

"Your females fought?!" Leon exclaimed. Ket chuckled again.

"Yes; you may not let your females fight, but give them a chance. They are incredibly fierce and strong when put to the test. In fact, I suggest it. There will be a future when woman will be treated like a man, in the manner of equality. How do I know this, you ask? I am wyvern; that is why. We can foresee things. Not as commonly as the dragons, granted, but still true." Ket finished. Arthur laughed,

"All this time; this time spent trying to kill your species, and not even knowing you could talk. Now I see how blind my father and his father before him were. You are not a beast, but a people." The wyvern grinned, thanking the king for those words of kindness. Moments later Merlin returned a dazed look in his eyes. He burped loudly, muttering some words to Ket, who turned and spoke to the wyverns, which dispersed into the cave pockets in the surrounding cliffs. Merlin plopped down, groaning.

"What wrong with him?" Gwaine asked Kilgharrah.

"He ate too much. He won't need to eat again for another month." Kilgharrah mocked.

"Shut up Kilgharrah. You know I'm going to have to throw this up so don't give them false information." Merlin grumbled. Arthurs face crinkled in disgust.

"Throw it up? Why would you have to do that?"

"I would be lighter. But we use the gases generated from digesting the food to help us breathe fire and fly. The gas funnels into a second set of lungs."

"Why don't you lot turn in for the night." Merlin said as he trudged over to the cave. Kilgharrah watched him go.

"He is so strange."

"That's Merlin for you." Arthur said, following the black dragon into the cave for rest.

Despite all that happened, Arthur wrestled with his feelings. Sure, he had agreed to ally himself with Merlin, but… He had lied to him for such a long time. How could he trust him anymore? Arthur didn't know if it was a spell, an enchantment or potion, but he held no ill will toward his servant. Can he even call him a servant anymore? Merlin is a king. That fact blew his mind. He… didn't know what to say. A king of dragons.

Gwain couldn't deal with this. His best friend, his foolish, trustworthy, ridiculous, smart mouthed, friend was a _dragon_. A dragon, supposedly evil, stupid beast. A king of dragons, and all the bloody magical creatures.

Percy wanted to throw up. He didn't get shocked or scared or angered as easily as the others, but this… Was this a betrayal? Did Merlin betray them? He allied himself with Arthur, which counted for something, right? He certainly lied to them. And how will the rest of Camelot react to this? How will they control the masses or the court? Does Gaius know of this?

Leon tried to push all thoughts back, didn't want to think about his current situation. Merlin fooled them all, who knows what else he did with his magic? Leon decided he didn't want to know…

Merlin watched the men as they slept, having a idea of what they were thinking. He looked at Aithusa, who was dosing under an already asleep Ket's wings. Kilgharrah was sitting next to him,

"Merlin, I hope you know what you did. The importance of this revelation will have a great impact on all of you. I still have to talk to Arthur about his bane. Do you know what it is, Merlin?" He asked slowly.

"Yes, Kilgharrah. I know. The creature in the caverns told me, and I told you. Why do you ask, despite knowing the answer?"

"Do you still want to tell him?"

"I never wanted to tell him; let him forget. If he remembers it, I will tell him. Otherwise, I do not see the reason to disturb his piece of mind. Once we get the regiment convinced, we shall make our way to Camelot."

"How do you plan to convince these men? They have been raised under Uther's hate of magic. They will try to attack you, and Arthur, thinking you enchanted him. How do you plan to convince them, I ask again?"

"I shall do it in their sleep, show them both the bad and the good of magic. I hope this will work; I will not violate their free will. In the meantime, I have to get saddles made for the knights. I hope the wyverns don't mind, even though I ordered them too, their opinion matters just as much as mine. Even more so. You know how our monarchy works. We can hardly call it that anymore, can we? I will form a different government. I shall call it… a democracy. Yes, I like it. It means _'fair rule'_ in our tongue. Your input, Kilgharrah?" 

"A brilliant idea. And that's coming from me, Merlin. But in any government, when it gets to powerful, the people relent. I would keep this a secret for the present."

"Yes; perhaps you are right. For the moment, I shall rest. And Kilgharrah; what we saw and heard stays between us." And with that, Merlin rested his head on his fore claws and slept.

**Yes, I made dragon's create democracy. Because that would be awesome. And mentioning government probably isn't very entertaining, but it was right there and I thought it would be cool for Merlin to create something so fundamental. Plus, I wanted to do something unsual, like have that type of concept in the story. And I find economics interesting… I am done explaining it. Constructive Criticism is welcome, though being rude about it is not… XD (Thats not a shot at anyone, I'm just pointing it out.)**


	5. Chapter 5

Eggs sizzled on the blackened and dented skillet .It had been three weeks since the men had arrived. The smell woke the king and his men, who looked up groggily. The air was cool and the breeze gentle, the sun has not yet risen. The soft underclothes of the king and knights wore rustled as they walked over to the small fire, where a pot with porridge sat cooling and eggs cackled in their cooking. They didn't hear the flapping of wings until it was right under their cliff hang. You see, they didn't remember what had transpired the weeks before due to effective mental blocking. Not through any sort of magic; no, they were just tired men waking after a stressful night with a desire to forget their struggles.

But this brief period of ignorance was shattered when a wyvern flew lazily by. But what startled the men the most was the raven haired youth on its back. He was sitting in high stirrups, standing in a crouch as he clung to the saddle's front. His legs were strapped to the stirrups, and the saddle had a different curve in contrast to a horse saddle. The wyvern was Ket, who landed on the edge of the cliff, claws digging into the stone. He folded is wings, the youth peering at the men as they stumbled forward, the events of the previous day crashing into their consciousness's.

"Good morning. I made breakfast, though the eggs may be burned." The young man said.

"Merlin? Do you need to do this every morning?" Leon asked. Merlin grinned.

"Yes." And with that, Ket dived off the cliff backwards, twisting in a magnificent twirl as he plunged downward. The men ran to the cliff edge in curiosity, each; besides Percy; feeling a bit unresolved feelings for what that man on the back of a wyvern was doing. He pulled out of the dive, rising high in the air, the wyvern unfurling its wings in a beautiful wreath of translucent flesh. Ket flipped on his back, Merlin sinking closer to the scaly hide. It couldn't be possible! How could anything fly upside down…? Suddenly the wind picked up, wiping their hair. The wyvern banked, flying towards them. In a fluid motion Ket turned and landed in the exact part he landed in before. This time Merlin got off, falling to the ground. He walked over to Arthur, grinning as he saw his shocked face.

"How did you do that?"

"Well… Remember when I told you your knights would mount wyverns in battle? I plan to teach you all how to do that. Except for you Arthur. If you don't want to, just hear me out." Merlin finished. Percy clutched his stomach shamefully, Leon stared at Merlin hardly, his thoughts wiping around his head, Gwaine grinned like a fool, and Arthur looked like he was expecting a punch in the face. Ket walked over, looking at each knight in the eyes, evaluating.

"_Kef Daw fse jert."_ He said. Merlin nodded, rubbing his chin,

"_Gwaine ess cec dour wert._" He commented.

"What?! I heard my name!" Gwaine exhaled sharply. Merlin looked at him with amused eyes.

"Ket has requested you as his rider. You can decline, but I wouldn't suggest it. Ket is the best flier of the wyverns." Merlin said.

"I have been watching you, you have a strong, determined soul. I wish to have you as my rider, unless there is an objection?" He asked. Gwaine looked uncertain. Since he had told Arthur about his magic and status, he had felt much lighter without the burden of lying. And he was enjoying the stunned look on Arthurs face. Something he rarely saw in Camelot.

"Gwaine. You may choose to accept it, this request. Don't take this lightly. Though Ket wouldn't be offended if you refuse; I can't say the same for the others. A partnership hasn't been offered in over a thousand years. If you accept, you will be able to communicate with each by thought. And… you will be able to use magic, and will be as nearly hard to kill as a wyvern. Essentially, when one partners with one of the _Draco_ family, you will share their lifespan, their thoughts. Gwaine, you will become immortal." Merlin finished. Gwaine sat down with a thud.

"I need to think." He mumbled. Merlin nodded, turning on his heal. Ket took to the air. But Arthur and the knights stayed where they were.

"Are you actually considering this?" A knight asked.

"I don't know. Its… I don't know, this is…" He licked his lips nervously. "Gods! We have been taught that magic is evil, punishable by death. But, Merlin showed us the good it can do, the world it lives in. He trusted us enough… to know about wyverns and dragons. I feel like I would be betraying myself and him if I didn't give it any thought. But I feel like I'm betraying you lot." He chocked up, not looking at anyone. The men stared at him uneasily; Leon and Percival left him to his thoughts, Arthur staying behind for a moment before following. He turned,

"Gwaine, whatever you choose, I will not stop you." And with that, Arthur went to the others. _We're not even in my kingdom; not really. I cant punish him if he wished to bond with these ways… our would is certainly the cruelest and kindest being. But what off Camelot? And Merlin? He's still acting like himself, less clumsily, more aware of everything. Showing that he does have a brain… He even cooked us breakfast. An almighty sorcerer doesn't strike me as the cooking type… _

**Yep. Anyone who has read the ****_Inheritance Cycle _****by Christopher Paolini (free advertising!) will know what I'm kinda getting at. I combined some of the abilities of the dragon riders into this; why, you ask? Because dragons are epic. Even though this is a wyvern. Am I rushing Merlin's awesomeness? Also, in the last three weeks, Merlin did act like himself. I just thought to many thing where happening at once, so I did the time jump. I promise the chapters get longer! I'm also writing a ****_Inheritance_**** fanfic, so yeah.**


	6. Chapter 6

The others were gathered around Merlin, speaking loudly,

"You never told us we needed to bond with these creatures!" Leon spat.

"I never told you a lot of things, Leon." He said calmly, looking his straight him in the eyes.

"Must we bond with them to ride them?" Percival asked. Merlin frowned,

"You can ride them without bondage, but they won't have a strong desire to trust or protect you. I honestly wanted to see how you would react to the wyverns when I introduced them. I am sorry, honestly. You can go, or not bind yourself to them, but answer me this. Do you find that you hate them?" With that, the warlock turned and walked away, jumping off the cliff as he did so. They didn't even go to see if he was okay; knowing he was. Each man tapered off to think. The fact was their lives had changed drastically when they walked into this cliff range. And it was never going to be the same. With the knowledge in their heads, they couldn't see going back to the boring-in-comparison-lives as knights, were all they got to do was battle. But this… they could fly, become something much greater, greater than the kingdom, perhaps. Of course these treasonous thoughts where snapped at, shut down, but they still happened, and they still remembered having them.

Percy went to talk to Gwaine, who was still sitting farther away from the group. Gwaine's eyebrows were drawn together, his eyes distant. A small smile flickered on his face, and then disappeared. His thoughts warred with each other. Percival could see a desire, but also hesitation. He is bound by his duty and loyalty to the king to serve him and follow his rule; and that was the end of it. But now… no, probably not. Could they serve the king and be riders? Was this ally ship permanent, or temporary? Was that the deciding factor…? Percival plopped down in front of Gwaine, who showed no sign of recognition, continuing to stare into a watercolor of colors in the sky. Clashing navy blue clouds, azure sky with a white fadeout as the sun rose. It was certainly beautiful. Gwaine was imagining what it would be like to fly in this moist mourning air; would it be cold? Would he be wet? Ket was flying off somewhere under the tree line, hunting for something, or thinking his own thoughts about this bondage.

_I have been free; well, as free as a wyvern can be under the scrutiny of the king. But since the king allied himself with Merlin, doors have opened that have been long shut. I do not regret choosing Gwaine; I feel his soul will balance out mine, his spirit is as fiery as dragons breath. _Ket thought as he flapped his huge wings over the leaf and needle covered ground, stirring these plant products into the air. He flew on silent wings; the loudest sound being the straining of his muscles. He was blending with the foliage, using his magic to become one with the forest scenery. Below, a lonely man walked. Ket circled back to investigate. He was one of Arthur's men; the red cloak visibly marking his loyalties. He was traveling alone. Flying lower, Ket saw that he was dark skinned, unlike any human he had seen before. He was searching for something, and a leather satchel hung from his shoulder. He rode no mount, using his feet as transportation. Ket somehow knew he was important, and that the king would want to see him.

Coming to a hover, barely stirring the leaves on the ground, Ket stretched his legs, gently wrapping his claws around the startled man. He dropped his façade, disquieting the man even more. He let loose a loud yell, struggling to beat his puny fists against the wyvern's foot. Of course, this started to irritate Ket, so, looking down, he spoke to the man,

"I would prefer you stop that." The man immediately stopped struggling, literally staring at the wyvern in shock. His face was stretched taunt over jaw as it dropped. Several croaking came from his mouth, and while the man was doing that, Ket leaned forward, darting up above the trees. He rose high into the air, so high it was nauseating to the man. His dark face paled as his world started to spin. Ket brought his legs up so he could face the man easily,

"What are you doing here?" He asked politely. The man worked his jaw up and down before speaking hoarsely,

"Y-you can speak?!" Ket rolled his eyes,

"Yes. I have been over this already. I can speak. We also have a monarchy and a king. Anything else?" Assuming that Ket couldn't speak, and underestimating his intelligence made his blood boil. Literally. The man yelped as Ket's blood heated up; not to the point of pain, but discomfort.

"Must I ask again?" The steady beats of Ket's wings seemed to hypnotize the man, calming him enough to speak,

"I came l-looking for K-k-king Arthur-r and his m-men." He stuttered. Ket laughed, a hearty laugh that vibrated both their bodies.

"Would you wish to see him?" The man nodded numbly, images of bloodied faces staring desperately from dirty caves filling his mind. The wyvern twirled, dashing through the air as he dived in a descent toward the cliff edge. Near the cliff top, he unfurled his wings, the mourning light reflecting a green haze through his expanding sails. Slowing to a point so great that Ket dropped the man, who rolled farther away from the edge. He then flew off, leaving the men to their turmoil for a time. Leon was the first to notice him, jumping to his feet to run to his comrades aid.

"Elyan! How did you get here?" Leon asked, joy plain on his unscathed face. Elyan turned, resting on his elbows, staring at him in shock.

"Dragon-thing-" He murmured. Percy walked up next, a smile splitting his usually stoic face.

"That wasn't a dragon. That was a wyvern." He said in enjoyment. Elyan was extremely confused, to say the least.

"Your acting like its normal!" He yelled, catching Arthurs and Gwaine's attention. Percy rubbed the back of his head,

"It has become normal in the last couple days."

"Elyan?!" Both king and knight exclaimed.

"What are you doing here?" Arthur asked, his voice stressed.

"Came looking for you! You've been gone for a month!" Elyan yelled, standing up. Ket landed nearby, walking over. Elyan quickly drew his sword, but he didn't move from his spot. Gwaine walked straight up to the wyvern,

"I accept. Ket, I accept your offer to be your rider." He said, his anxiety showing. Elyan's sword clattered to the ground.

"WHAT?!" Ket leaned down, touching his nose to Gwaine's head, breathing deeply into his hair. In a rush, Gwaine was enveloped in a bright white light, the curves a light blue. Elyan tried to run to him, but was held back by Arthur and Percival.

"What are you doing?! That creature his going to kill him!"

"No he's not! They are binding!" A voice said from behind. A black dragon walked past the men,

"Merlin! Where have you been?!" Arthur yelled.

"Merlin?! What the bleeding hell?! A dragon?!" Elyan again exclaimed, shock and fear plain. Merlin walked over to the two species. He dragging his tail point along the ground, digging gorges of earth out around the two in a circle. After returning to his previous spot, he blew a stream of blue fire over Ket, joining the light emanating from Gwaine to Ket. Soon both were enveloped in the powerful light. Burrowing his tail, bottom horns and claws into the earth, both of Merlin's eyes turned painfully gold. Molten rock filled the gorge of earth, like blood filling a vein. He started chanting in dragon tongue. Wisps of fire leaked from between his teeth, the words he was saying so powerful that he couldn't even control his own supremacy.

He started shouting, the words barely recognizable as anything other than growls and snarls and hissing. A faction of wyverns chanted along with the dragon lord, adding a chorus and ordered chaos. The atmosphere seemed to vibrate with power, filling each man's chest with awe and wonder. And, even a little fear. The lava bubbled menacingly from its frothy rink of charring earth. In thin, delicate lines, it rose into the air, forming a cage around the lighted creatures. The light on the inside of this cage compressed, forming a tight ball about the size of a melon. Ket and Gwaine were not seen. _NO_! Was screeched in each man's head. The light exploded outward as soon as it compressed, bouncing and swirling inside the confines of the molten bar. The wyverns cut themselves out of the chanting, which sounded more like a song, leaving only the dragons voices. Kilgharrah joined the circle, and so did Aithusa, forming three points. They chanted with Merlin, though they sung a different song. Aithusa breathed a ball of white fire into the mix of light; Kilgharrah added his red tongue; and Merlin let loose another steam of cerulean. These colors chased each other around the ball of light, tightening and forming three bands of fire around the radiance. It looked like that strange representation some distant scientist had called an _atom_. And then, the molten cage collapsed to the ground along with Aithusa, the light slowed and the fire dissipated. Seconds later, the glow burst, revealing them.

**OMG! I did rush it a bit, but I REALLY wanted to get to this point. Good sensory details, da? My, this is getting interesting, ja? I combined two languages! Da is Russian for yes and Ja is German for yes! You just got educated! Read on, mighty reviewers! **

**P.S Sorry it took so long to post this! Ive been quite busy with all these applications and fun school knowledge stuff! *says sarcastically***


	7. Chapter 7

They were different. Gwaine was dressed in a long white robe, his hair tied back, a gold gilded leather book in hand, a spear in his other, and a bow slung across his back. Ket had a plate of metal on top of his head, framing his features. Two points of the mask extended down past his teeth, forming metal sabers. His entire body was covered in the light, silver armor, and a regal saddle sat on his back. They stood there as if they were statues for about a minute, in which was all it took for the remaining dragons to collapse in exhaustion, though they were still conscience.

It took a moment, but they took a large breath. Ket stumbled, ending up on his rear, and Gwaine leaned heavily on his spear. He looked at the knights in a sort of wondrous expression, muttering under his breath.

Arthur slowly walked up to him, curiosity sitting heavy in his stomach. Ket was breathing heavily, waves of heat waving in the air.

"Gwaine?" Arthur asked in hesitation. The knights stared in awe from behind their king. Gwaine faced Arthur,

"My lord?" He asked, his voice sounded different, hoarse, like he wasn't used to speaking English. He leaned even heavier on his spear; Arthur went to his aid, holding up a shoulder. Gwaine leaned into it, nodding his head in thanks, clutching the book until his knuckles turned white, and used the spear as a staff. Seeing his struggles, Ket tried to stand, but fell back again, his legs shaking. Kilgharrah dragged himself over to Ket, shoving his wing under Ket's, using the powerful muscles to push up the exhausted wyvern. Scrapping along, Ket plopped down next to Gwaine, who transferred his weight off of Arthur and onto Ket's neck. Arthur looked on in confusion, the trust Gwaine showed in this creature surprising him.

For some reason, Arthur found his way to Merlin, who was staring at the sky, using his bottom horns to prop his head up. He was breathing heavily, but evenly. Arthur stood right in front of him, waiting for him to un-stick his horns from the ground so they could speak.

"Yes?" He whispered. Arthur folded his arms,_ What_ _had happened to Gwaine?!_ He asked this, speaking his thoughts. Merlin didn't answer a faraway look in his different colored eyes. Gwaine had made his way to a seat by the fire, Ket's head resting next to him, snoozing. The knights interrogated him, while explaining what was going on to Elyan. But he was silent, looking at the cover of the book intently, though there was no writing on it. Arthur stated to yell quietly at Merlin, demanding an answer in harsh whispers.

"Merlin, I need to know-!" Arthur started before Merlin cut him off,

"Arthur. I may have a human soul, but I am currently in a dragon's body. And this body is starting to get _irritated_. I am tired, and will explain things later, just let it sink in." He snapped. Arthur stepped back. Was that a threat? Did Merlin just threaten him?! He was acting strange, like he was in a lot of pain and hunger, like his body was under siege of its own and he was too tired to fight it off. With that, Merlin dragged himself into the cave, his brow drawn together and grunting. Arthur just stood there as he turned into a human halfway there. He fell to the ground, falling on his hands and feet. He turned to look at Aithusa, who was still in the same place where she had passed out, but apparently was too weak to go help her. Arthur rushed over to his servants-allies-whatever- side. Merlin had sweat beading his forehead, his arms quaked. Arthur had hardly ever seen Merlin this weak; bending down he picked up the young man under the arm.

"Sorry Arthur. It takes a lot of energy to do something like that. 'Fraid I'm gonna be like this for a couple days." Merlin muttered.

"I don't understand; you have preformed great pieces of magic without getting tired." Arthur said, trying to distract Merlin from whatever was warring his body.

"'In great feats of magic; equivalent exchange must occur. When it does, you must pay for the magic you expended previously.' I'm paying for all the magic I have down since the last time I was injured or sick. Whenever it was." Merlin explained clutching his head as a huge wave of pain crashed into his mind. Arthur dragged him to the cave, setting him down on the ground. Merlin nodded his thanks, leaning against a wall. Arthur could see that he was in a great amount of agony, but he refused to breathe erratically; to grimace. Arthur sat down in front of him, unknowingly showing the loyalty that Merlin showed him. And there he sat, not moving, not speaking.

**Yes, I so did make a reference to Full-Metal Alchemist. I think the idea of equivalent exchange should apply somewhat to this situation. Of course, I've amped up Merlin's awesomeness, so he does need to show some weakness so it doesn't get to repetitive and boring, and I also made a little mystery here. WHAT HAPPENED TO GWAINE?! You ask, it will soon be revealed. Any guesses? Oh, please leave a guess in reviews, it would so interesting what y'all thought happened to him! Speaking of which, if you all notice some unexplained gaps in the story, I'm planning to address them later, when ****Blank, Morgana, Blank, blank, blank and blank happens. Blank, gonna be awesome, and finally, blank.****I hope you enjoyed that little sneak peak of what's to come!**

**P.S: When Merlin basically told Arthur to bug off, I know it kinda sounded weird, but if you were exhausted after doing whatever Merlin just did, you wouldn't care if what you said made sense. **


	8. Chapter 8

Merlin passed in and out of consciousness for three days before definitively falling into a coma. Arthur was shaking him, yelling his name and insults to try to wake him up. Gwaine had hardly spoken, spending most of his time with Ket, much to the suspicion and discomfort of the knights. They also made note of Arthur's persistence in taking care of Merlin, forcing water down his throat and tending to his fever. Kilgharrah had spent most his time tending to Aithusa, but did check on Merlin, and that's how they knew Merlin was in a coma. Gwaine had been watching intently, secretly using Ket's sensitive hearing to perceive what was going on. Since joining, they could take advantage of the others senses, memories, and strengths. Just like what Merlin said.

At the mention of Merlin's ailment, he shot up, walking over in long strides. The knights moved out of his way like he was some disease, unsure of what he was going to do. He crouched next to Merlin, his eyes probing. Arthur watched, irresolute,  
"What are you doing?" he asked. Gwaine peered into his kings eyes  
"When I entered the _Feartem_," He said. Everyone was now listening very intently, crowding around him and sitting, like children waiting eagerly for the village story teller to regale them with their tale. He took a sprig of grass growing in one of the cracks in the stone, and yanked.  
"I learned many, many things." He played with the grass, looking at Merlin. He shot up, walking toward Ket. They watched as he approached, opening the saddle bag next to Ket. Once things had settled a bit after their arrival, Gwaine had taken off Ket's armor and saddle. The saddle was next to Ket at the present time. Gwaine took out the book that he had been clutching, and returned to the group. Kilgharrah was watching from a distance.

"What is that book?" Arthur had asked for the thousandth time. In these times, Gwaine had answered with another question or changing the subject,

"Something of great power and knowledge." he sat down, right next to Merlin. He took a quill from the folds of his robe, opening the book. Looking over Gwaine's shoulder, Elyan found that the pages were completely blank. He frowned,

"There's nothing on those pages!" He said. Gwaine smirked, placing the tip of the quill to the paper, the black ink seeping into the paper. He turned back to the paper, writing fast and large, runes sprinkling the page. Of course, the men who saw the runes didn't recognize them as such. He wrote perhaps a paragraph before setting the quill down, as the runes were absorbed into the page. The ink had completely disappeared, much to astonishment of Elyan and Percy, who were standing behind Gwaine. The pages suddenly started to move, as if a strong wind was pushing them. They flipped in the breezeless air, the cover snapping shut. Sighing, Gwaine then reopened the book, this time tight script covering every inch of the page. He set it down, so it was visible to the entire group, as the wind again turned it. It settled on a page towards the end of the book, a plant painted in the corner.

"Gwaine… did you… j-just do _magic?_" Elyan asked. Gwaine smirked.

"Do you really think being bound to a magical animal wouldn't have an effect on me?"

**SO, SO, SO, SO, SO SORRY! The hard drive on my computer died, so I had to retype ****_everything_****. Especially my story on *cough, cough* (my username is **thornridgeblackrise9, **the book is **_The Skinwalker Program__**, all rights reserved.**_**) Summary below:**

The year is 2109. And, apparently, dragons are real. No one knows anything about their past, their motives. But one thing's for sure- Joss Petroc was burned by one. He currently resides in Wendell Coastal Hospice, with three months of life left. You'd think that the technology would be able to save him-but there are things that just can't and won't be done. But when BloodStone, a multi-billion dollar company that has business in every city, trading port; you name it, there're there. Joss's hatred for the dragons is immense. He blames them for his impending death. His father, an Admint in the Constill militia, died, leaving him a mysterious journal to open when he turns 15. When BloodStone rep James Dillion offers Joss to join as a perfect candidate of the Skinwalker Program, he accepts, not knowing at all what waits for him. One thing's for sure: he won't be staying in his skin for long.

**I promise it doesn't sound as graphic as it sounds! It's just an analogy! **


	9. Chapter 9

They looked at him in wonder, unsure. They had suffered much shock, and the things they had seen gave them a certain tolerance to these constant shocks. So, they were greatly surprised (shocked), but not shell-shocked. Gwaine shrugged sheepishly, his ears reddening. He rested a hand on the text, trying to ignore their gazes. Arthur spoke up,

"Gwaine… You can be hanged for this." Alarm quickly dashed across the riders face, but melted into nothingness

"I know my lord. Like I said, when I was in the _Feartem_, I learned things. I was in there for…five? No, six? Ah, no it was five. Five years. Time passes differently inside the _Feartem_. Merlin came in with Kilgharrah and Aithusa to teach us. It was… so strange. I fought it for a while, approximately a month, but the link I developed with Ket demanded that I do it, so… This is incredibly awkward." He let loose a small bark of laughter, "I'm… not sorry about it. Yet I am. You all must have seen that not all magic is evil. Merlin proved that before. I…" It was obvious that Gwaine was having a hard time explaining this. He gulped, looking over at Merlin, and then looked at his fellow males.

"Am not exactly… I'm a mix. A mix of wyvern and man. My mind… things, capabilities unknown now known. Like Merlin is a walker in the dragons flesh and mind, I…" He put the heels of his hands against his forehead, face flushing. Not being able to handle the stares of his friends, he jumped up, grabbed the book, and dashed to the cliff edge, jumping off, a dry rustling heard as Ket picked him up. It was one lesson learned long ago, trying to stay in an unstable situation with you being root of it is something you want to leave people to think about. It may not make sense; its like when you anger your wife. You want to leave her to calm down and not hinder her thoughts.

Arthur stared after him, then turned and walked to the depths of the cavern.

Gwaine mentally smacked himself. _I shouldn't have told them… But I know its good that I did. They would have found out anyway._ Gwaine fought his tide off emotions, flying steadily deeper into the forest. It was nice to get away from the familiar settings of the cave. This flying reminded him of the forests within the _Feartem_. _Feartem _is actually dragon tongue for the _Gateway of the Haven's_. Ket left him to his thoughts, thinking his own. He had heard Gwaine's metal distress, and hung on the cliff with his fore-claws before Gwaine jumped off.

It was wondrous, this city. Everything was made of either glass of metal. It was both light and gothic. A city built by dragons. The interior was always warm, in contrast to the bitter cold of the outside.

They have an eye for art; that is assured. Nothing a mortal man could even compensate. The mosaics _moved_; the stained glass seemed to sing and shift. One key detail as to this city, it was full of _dragons._

The Fourth Haven is the city of dragons. The First Haven if the city of flying serpents, The Second Haven the city of wingless drakes, The Third Haven the city of wyverns. The last and final city is The Fifth Haven, the city of oceanic reptiles. It was a simple network of intricate creatures, a place of its own dimension. _This is the place where all dragons and wyverns originated. _How they got to this world, before man was birthed, was through a tear. Truly, the reason man were able to deflect and defeat the dragons as easily as they did was because they weren't around their birth place. It strengthened them, as does it strengthens a man fighting on his own land. It takes a long time for a dragon to adjust, and they have long memories.

The training of any rider is handled by the dragons. They are the leaders of the Haven's, and produce the best partnerships besides the wyverns, their closest relatives. The other creatures, through no fault of their own, don't react well with a human binding.

Merlin had come almost immediately after sending them through, perhaps a week after. Gwaine still remembers it, remembers that he had stopped aging that day.

_After the blinding compression of his and Ket's being, he awoke on a field of too green grass, gawking at a much too blue sky. His arms were sprawled out next to him, like the wings of an angle in strong silhouette to the sun. The air smelt of an acidic substance and nature. He gazed at the sky for what seemed to be forever, before something hard and about the size of a cat plopped down on his chest. Grunting in surprise, his dark eyes looking into molten indigo ones. A rust colored dragon sat on his ribs, staring at him quizzically._

_"Xew tya usis wau?" It said its tone jagged and forceful. Gwaine stared as alarm filled his heart, it pumping the speed of a fox running from Arthur's hounds. It stared down at his chest, head cocked to the side, leaning on it's crossed… what were they, claws or paws? They had little white claws coming from strong looking stubs. To save time, they will be called paws. It had tiny little tan ringed thorns sticking out its spine, running past a set of bare wing fingers. It was a hatchling, Gwaine realized with a shock. _

_"A-ah…" Gwaine made a strangled noise, gurgling through his constricted throat. It peered at him again in an un-hostile manner, only curiosity in its eyes. A high pitched bark echoed around them, the acidic smell growing stronger. Gwaine started with wide eyes beyond the little dragon, into the inky jade forest as it rustled. _That must be the mother_, was a panicked thought that zipped through his mind. The dragon seemed to sigh, eyes drooping as it slithered off his chest and trudged its way to the wood slowly, answering the high pitched bark with a long low whistle followed by a rippling snarl. Gwaine quickly rose to his feet, looking for any place to conceal himself. THERE! A gigantic light grey rock, as high and as wide as Camelot's castle, stood behind him. He rushed to a hollow eave; hiding in the earth's cradling arms. A roar stole the metal from his bones, causing him to press himself even further into the stone. A heavy trotting ripped the silence after, and the tree's seemed to bow as the immense presence revealed itself, letting loose a bright torrent of dazzling black flame. _

**I am alive! So, so sorry guys. Exams… track meets… band… uhg, I is busy person who don't use proper grammar. Haha, that was fun. Anyway, notice I am now explaining the ****_Feartem. _****And what's within. If you don't like the idea of the dragons and such being in a different dimension, I personally agree, but I'm trying to make myself conform more to the story and what would make sense, ****_at times._****It would make sense if the other creatures were in a other dimension because they would have to come from somewhere, also it gives hope to the species and generally spices things up. And were else would Gwaine had gone? I was playing with the thought of sending him to a sort of shadow of a memory, but then it would be depressing because it would always be in the past with no progression to the future. I also thought it was a simpler way to explain the creatures existence since there have been accounts of strange reptilian creatures in cultures all around the world. **


	10. Chapter 10

**BWT, I don't know how many chapters I'll make about Gwaine, since he's really important to the story line. True it is diverging from Merlin and Arthur, but I've been making this up as I go along, and my gut tells me to explain Gwaine and Ket, so I don't have to do it when _blank. Blank, blank, ect._ I do have a plan for what's going on now with the whole Camelot situation and Gwaine, but Merlin and Arthur… hmm, strange ideas being cooked up. OFF TO THE FLASHBACK THINGY!**

Why?! Why did I come here?! _Gwaine thought as the dragon rushed into focus. It shined blood red, black menacing flame dripping from its teeth. Gold eyes scanned the line ahead, looking for the threat to her child. Said child sat with his tail neatly curled around his paws, sitting between his mothers front legs. Her poisonous tail lashed around viciously, breaking the branches of nearby trees. Gwaine pressed himself as hard as he could, laying down on the ground and trying to melt into it. He was afraid of this dragon, especially since it was a _mother. _All his years being a knight, the one thing he knew never to temper was a mother protecting her child. They were ten times more ferocious than any insane man, any rabid bear, and any dragon he knew. Only now it was a mother dragon. That was true fear, plus the fact he didn't know what was going on, were he was, what he was supposed to do, and so much more. _

_He screamed inside, at his stupidity. His instinct kicked in, but it wasn't a familiar instinct. A foreign idea fought its way to his awareness, one that said, "Even when no other is present you are never alone. Just call and relief will come." Deciding he had nothing better to do, he sent a loud, desperate mental plea, still trying not to breath so he wouldn't be heard by the sensitive ears of the dragon. The dragons roared again, this time closer. Curiousity got the best of him, and he peeked his head out from behind part of the wall he was nudged behind. She was 20 feet away from him now, and she saw him. They made a moment of eye contact, her frozen gold eyes boring into his soft brown ones, before she lifted her lips, baring her long white fangs, lowering her head and angling her body so that it faced him. He knew this body language, surprisingly enough. It was quite similar to that of a bobcat, or a mountain lion. She was warning him first, challenging him with her direct stare. It was taken the same way in the human world, direct, unbroken eye contact is seen as a challenge sometimes. His mind said look away, avoid this, but he was rigid, he couldn't move if he wanted to. That would prove to be his downfall._

_She pounced. First she drew her dark wings as close to her body as they would allow, tensing her leg muscles, rearing quickly and pushing off towards him. He covered his face in a stupid attempt to save himself. It was like she moved through air slowly, and he reflected that he was stupid for coming, for not doing something to prevent this, like finding a better hiding place, or not binding with Ket to begin with. Where was he anyway? Didn't Merlin say he would be able to hear his thoughts? That he would have the strength of a wyvern? A loud grunt almost shadowed out a vibrating that ripped its way through the ground and up Gwaine's body. The mother dragon was on her side, a green shape atop her, pining her down with great big clawed feet. Ket. He pushed her head down, using his stag horns as a sort of cage around her head. He spoke to her, trying to calm her,_

"_Wase jerd t-tewy opalua! Plee ist mews terc'faaece, dolp quarter jaess!" 'We will not harm your child! Please don't hurt my rider!' Was what Ket had said. The mother stopped struggling, and Ket allowed her up. Gwaine stood, gazing at the scene and scolding himself for being a coward. Well, he was weaponless, and he wasn't a fool; but still that guilty feeling of cowardess remained. Slowly, hesitantly, he wondered over to were Ket and the female dragon were conversing. It looked like they were having a somewhat difficult time understanding each other, which was explained to Gwaine upon Ket's realization of his riders presence. _

"_Are accents are different and I think we speak a different dialect of dragon tongue." His face radiated glee as the female drake took deep breathes to compensate for her over reaction._

"_Where are we?" Gwaine questioned, moving closer to Ket's legs like the dracling had for its mother's protection. Ket looked down at him kindly,_

"_We… are in the place of legends. The place I dreamt of as a fledgling. We are in Fourth Haven, city of dragons." _


	11. Chapter 11

**I am so sorry I haven't updated in like, months. I just haven't been interested in this story so I haven't been working on it. If some stuff doesn't line up, sorry. I may not remember what all my intentions were that I never wrote down. **

Arthur gripped the bangs of his hair, squinting his eyes. He was so confused; his servant being a dragon lord still threw him, now his knight, one of his round table, had… _mixed _himself with a wyvern, supposedly. Arthur wasn't in control of the situation, he was _the bloody king_; he should always be in control of the situation. He didn't know what to say to his knights; he had to deal with them becoming riders, if they chose to. He had to deal with Morgana and the _Sewrt_, he had to save his regiment. This was one of the times he felt all the weight upon his shoulders. And it was so crushing, so, so crushing… How had he dealt with this? All of this; Camelot, magic… what was he supposed to do with it? Sometimes he wished he was born a commoner, where the only worry was the crop and his small family. A mother, a father, a brother… his father and mother were dead, his sister hated him with a passion, and Gwen had run off with Lancelot after he had her put to burn at the stake. He had found them… doing despicable things, things only married woman should do. There was so much pain, and his future looked so full of pain.

He imagined how his knights would react if he died one day. Percival, Elyan, Leon… Gwaine. Would they miss him? He shook his head. He needed to stop having this pity party and get something productive done. How was he going to handle the situation? _I should get Mer-_ and then he stopped that thought. He was going to get Merlin to do something, knowing it would end up with him spewing his wisdom. But now he did that more, since he didn't have to hide who he was. Things had gotten so bloody complicated.

Leon climbed down the face of the cliff, using the handholds as a means. A plume of dust and a pebble fell on his head. Looking up, he saw Percival gazing down at him.

"What on earth are you doing?" He asked. Leon smirked, looking down because of the glare of the sun.

"Going for a walk. I think we all need some time to think." He answered.

"We've had a long time to think, Leon. About Merlin, and then Gwaine. Its been two days since he told us. Arthur has been going through depression and anger. Same with Elyan. Yet, I haven't seen much reaction from you about Gwaine." Percy squinted at him. Leon turned his head grimly, judging the distance.

"Come; I find it hard to talk hanging off the side of a cliff face."

After 5 minutes of calming a height fearing Percy, they landed on the grassy earth. Percy rolled his arm up and down, grimacing at the height still and soreness in his limb.

"I never expected Gwaine to do something like that." Leon remarked.

"He _is _ Gwaine. Doing stupid things since he was out of the womb; plus he always seemed to have a different type of loyalty to Merlin." Percival pointed out, falling in step with his comrade in arms and one of his best friends.

"That's true. I think Gwen is still getting at him, despite the fact she ran off with Lancelot."

"I don't know, Leon. I think its that, but also just the fact that so many people have betrayed Arthur. Maybe Merlin being a king in his own right is a sort of betrayal."

"There's no 'maybe' about it. It was a betrayal; of trust. But I have forgiven him, and I assume Arthur has to. It's Merlin; you can't just brush him off or banish him. Imagine what that would do to Arthur; Merlin's his best friend whether he likes it or not." Leon said. Percival chuckled humorlessly.

"Ah, its strange. We came down here to gossip about Gwaine and yet we're talking about Merlin and Arthur. I wonder if Merlin's fever has broken yet."

"Fight me." Leon demanded, throwing Percy a sword, one that he caught by the hilt.

"Why? We were having such a lovely conversation." He said as a sword clashed into his.

"We've become complacent. We need to practice. And I never said we could stop having a conversation."And so they fought, grinning as sweat leaked down their brow and as sparks darted off their clashing blades.

"OI!" Called Elyan, running up to them; Percy parried Leon's strike and called a time out.

"What?" he asked Elyan.

"Why'd you leave me up there? You think I want to take the kings frustration?!" He laughed, drawing his own blade.

"Oh, no reason. Just thought you'd get too scared of the cliff." They teased. Elyan shook his head warningly and jabbed at Leon, while looking at Percy. Leon blocked it, flushing.

"That's cheating!" he growled with good humor as Percy and Elyan laughed at him. He attacked Percy, catching him off guard and blocking a attack from Elyan. The fight again continued when a voice rang out, a familiar one.

"Can I join?" Gwaine asked, dressed in regular clothing and that growl gone from his voice. He held a sword like the rest of them. They looked at each other hesitantly before Elyan spoke,

"Sure! Lets see what the dragons taught you!" He joked, taking position. Gwaine mimicked as the two other swordsmen backed off to let them duel. They stared each other down for a moment before Elyan laughed the first attach, to which Gwaine easily avoided with a simple block.

"Come on Elyan! I'm not a child!" He demanded. Elyan frowned,

"No, I'm pretty sure your still a child." A thrust by Elyan. Block by Gwaine. Slash. Scrape. Jab. Jab back. And then Gwaine did something a bit strange but could be marked as creative. He twirled away, taking Elyan's concentration with him as he focused on the moving target. When he thought Gwaine had an opening in his ribs, he found cool steel inches from his cheek. Backing away, they went at it again and again. Each time, Gwaine showed that his creativity was actually trained into him. He form changed, his attacks changed, and it was _better_. By far. Elyan didn't know the technique, so finding weak spots was harder than thought. Gwaine knocked Elyan's sword into the ground, the nose planted firmly in the dirt. He kicked Elyan out of the way, picking up the blade and adding it to his arsenal. Percy threw his sword at Elyan, who took it. Gwaine held both swords in his hands, panting. With renewed vigor, Elyan attacked, but was deflected by the flurry of swords. This continued until everyone was absolutely convinced that Gwaine was a superior swordsmen. He handed Elyan back his blade, sheathing his own. All knights followed this example.

"Good fight." He responded to Elyan's nod.

"And you learned to fight like that in Fourth Haven?"

"Yes. It's strange having something that can't use a sword tell you how to use it." Gwaine told.

"How did you learn it then?" Leon asked, handing around a skin of water.

"Oh, well, dragons communicate more or less through feelings and images, not really words. Words can't describe everything. It goes through your head, the feelings and images. It's hard to adjust to at first, but you get used to it." Gwaine said as he took a swig from the water skin. Ket flew overhead. Gwaine pointed to the wyvern.

"Example; I can feel his hunger. He's going to go hunt, and I knew were he's going to hunt without a single word. It's still a bit strange, since us humans are so wired for language."

"I guess." Mumbled Elyan at the same time as Percival said,

"Interesting." A pause as they walked back the cliff.

"How are we supposed to get back up there?" groaned a knight.

"The same way we got up." Leon deadpanned.

"Really?! I HAD NO IDEA!" Elyan shouted sarcastically.

"WELL THEN START CLIMBING!" Leon yelled back.

**This was a filler chapter, I guess. I just need some time to get back into the rhythm of the story. REVIEW AND TELL ME WHAT I DID WRONG! But be nice about it!**


	12. Chapter 12

_Blackness. A swirling vortex of it, sucking him into a continuous cycle of death and pain. Of his world, the immense stress of it; of what he has to do or this will happen to someone he cares about. He just wanted to let go, let himself disappear into that anonymous, indistinct color. He could be forgotten, he could rest. _

_No. He wouldn't, couldn't leave his responsibilities. It would torture him to do so. He had to be there for Arthur, the knights, Camelot. He had to help Arthur create Avalon, defeat Morgana, revive the drake races or at least get the kingdoms to accept their presence. He would; he WILL NOT FAIL. Hope rushes into that hollow place in his chest, like a light burning the darkness. You ever only truly know who stands in shadow when a light illuminates their ashen faces, and they cast what they represent. Merlin felt a rush creep up his spine, the feeling of flight comes to mind. His mind vibrates, his body shakes, his eyes pop open as their golden glory is displayed for the world to see. _

Sweat bubbles off his forehead as he looks around the cave, trying to reacquaint himself with it. Kilgharrah watched him as he shot forward. Gold eyes clashed with their counterparts brighten glow of happiness.

"Merlin, you have come back to us." He said simply. Merlin nodded, looking around as Aithusa pounced on him. He groaned as she dug her head into his clammy hand, and stepped on his fragile stomach.

"Father! Father, why did you sleep for so long! I'VE BEEN BORED!" She laughed playfully, spreading her just barely webbed wings.

"Well, sorry if my _exhaustion _ got in the way." Merlin said sarcastically. Aithusa laughed deep in her throat, a burp of fire frothing forth. Merlin just watched as it barreled and smacked him in the face. Perfectly fine, he rolled his eyes at her before wobbling to a stand, leaning against the wall.

"You've been unconscious for about a week or two." Kilgharrah informed, hauling scaly hide to walk next to his friend.

"Really? Huh, only felt like a second." Merlin mentally hissed at those memories. He was ashamed that he even wanted to let all of this go, to fail others. He shook himself, leaning a hand on Kilgharrah as he walked out into the light, out from under their cave. Looking around, he saw the knights things strewn around messily, looking for the messy owners to chide them.

"If you're looking for the knights, they went to have a roe with each other in a match of steel against steal. Arthur left soon afterward, wanting just as much to relax. I told him to go, that I had you. He hasn't left your side since you fell down, and he's still emotionally compromised about the situation with you having magic. Aithusa chased a little wyvern who had been flying by, running along the edge of the cliff. She looked played with it, talking and yelling and spitting playful jets of flame at it. The wyverns set down, resting her wings. Curious, she looked at Aithusa's developing wings, asking why they were like that,

"Well, since we're slightly different, you and I, me having front arms and the ability to breathe fire, I have to wait longer for my wings to develop. Father told me once that its nature's way of keeping a fair balance between us two breeds." Aithusa said in a teacher like voice. The little wyvern nodded, placing her wings claws on the ground and playing with the dirt. She had a sort of purple tint to her dark body, with icy white edges to her wings and scales. She was a beautiful little thing. Her eyes were a desirable bronze; she would be the heart throb of the boy wyverns when she grew up. Merlin sighed sadly; knowing the only dragon friend Aithusa would have would be Kilgharrah and him. Kilgharrah seemed to have the same thought, more than once, and met Merlin's still golden eyes.

"That aside, how are we going to attack Morgana_ and _get Arthur's regiment?" Merlin pondered.

"Seems we should finally get on that, shouldn't we?" Kilgharrah replied tastelessly. They pondered ridiculous strategies while Merlin went around taking everyone's armor, polishing it, and putting it in the cave by their respective beds, then cleaning their sheets in a pocket of clean water in the back of the cave, joking and laughing with Kilgharrah. The knights and Arthur still weren't back yet, so replacing the sheets and the clothes that he had cleaned, Merlin moved onto something else to do. He enjoyed being the servant again, taking care of everybody with the complexities of magic. After the suggestion of Merlin flying down on the regiment and singing them into submission and dropping dragon dung onto Morgana Merlin prepared a feast. He found some of those strange creatures around, cooked them to a golden crisp with the freshest herbs and salts, and he set them down on a raised stone shelf he had pulled out of the ground; successfully making a rectangular table with stumps of rock for the knights and Arthur to sit at along with Ket, Kilgharrah, and Aithusa. Merlin made no place for him. He filled the metal goblets the men had brought with them with a special wine the wyverns had made a decade ago. Wyverns made the best wine; it's just a simple fact. He found their wooden plates, set them at the seats they ordinarily take in Camelot, lit a few candle and blew the clouds away as it gradually got darker. He took a step back to admire his work, the setting sun, the aching of his muscles, and he saw it was good. He heard grumbling from below; _the knights_. He thought, accidently grouping Arthur in with them. Going to the cliff edge, he had to hold back laughter at their faces of struggle as they tried to get back up the cliff.

"Merlin?!" Elyan asked, hanging by his finger tips. Leaning down, Merlin took hold of his arm and dragged him up with surprising strength.

"Taken how hard that was for you, I think I will gather everyone else. Please, take a seat." Merlin said, enjoying Elyan's astonishment at the set up of the table. The platform of the cliff was probably something around 200 feet wide, 300 feet outward from the mouth of the cave, and circular in shape. It was uneven stone, but not terribly so. The table went the length way's, pointing toward the setting sun. Above, the sky seemed to split with stars. Tonight was special; it could be felt by all.

Merlin dived off the cliff, descending a ways away from any eyes. He walked around the back of the group as the pondered how Elyan got up so fast, being the only one on the face of the cliff. Doubting he'd actually get back up, they didn't pay attention to him. Arthur stood chatting lightly with the knights, all of them covered in sweat and swords in scabbard. Gwaine was even there, singing a merry tune with Leon and Percival. It warmed his heart to watch his friends be this happy. Just as Arthur was about to try to climb back up, Merlin, leaning against a tree, made his presence known. Naturally, he threw at Arthur's butt. Well, not at Arthur's butt per say… but it landed there. He cracked his trade mark grin, trying as hard as he could to keep from passing out from laughter as Arthur slowly turned around, glaring at the knights before seeing Merlin, holding his face as joy bubbled forth. Arthur looked at him in confusion for a moment, saying,

"Merlin?" than in a loud, angry tone,

"MERLIN!" And Arthur ran at Merlin, who gave him a good chase. To say, it was infinitely entertaining. When Arthur caught Merlin, he held him in a head lock as he approached the group of men, a triumphant smile in his face. Merlin couldn't help but smile either, making eye contact with Arthur before saying,

"I could _so_ get out of this, no magic needed." Merlin boasted jokingly. Arthur tightened his grip a little,

"Yeah? Prove it." He challenged. A chant of 'oh' rippled through the knights.

"You asked for it." Then Merlin grabbed Arthur's forearm, twisting it behind his back. Arthur's face became one of surprise as the pain hit him. With his other hand, he pushed Merlin away from his sprained arm, going after him with a cocked fist. Merlin caught the fist, throwing it to the side, coming close despite fighting logic, jabbed Arthur in the gut, twirled under the twisted arms fist and grabbed a leg. He tried to trip Arthur, but Arthur had too much weight on it, so it was firm. Arthur had Merlin by the back of his shirt, but Merlin wiggled out of it, revealing his chest and back. It was a surprise, certainly. Across his chest were small veins filled with blackness. Merlin's joy left him as everyone looked at him. But that wasn't all; those veins congregated over his heart to form a tattoo of sorts; it was a dragon, maw open displaying its sharp fangs and wings flared out. Scars littered his lower abdomen and traveled to his back, absolutely covering his back. Arthur recognized those scars; they were from a whip.

**I feel bad if this is departing from the story a bit and becoming cheesy and even MORE OOC, but my juices were flowing and this is what came out. I hope you all like it! REVIEW AND TELL ME WHAT I DID WRONG! NICELY!**


	13. Chapter 13

Frightened, concerned, and most importantly angry at who ever did this, Arthur grabbed Merlin by the arm and demanded how he got those scars. Putting his shirt back on, Merlin spoke.

"No one did it to me, if that's what you're thinking. It's strange; I don't know how to describe it. See, the dragon, the one I become, is another version of myself, and it lives in side me. When I first discovered it, it wanted to come out, but I didn't know how to let it out. I was young. So it tore at my back and stomach, trying to get out. From the inside out. The cuts healed in a day or so, but I kept the scars. Why they look like lashings from a whip; I think it's a form of camouflage. The tattoo came after my first change. Dragon blood is different from human blood; its black inside their bodies like humans is purple while inside the body." Merlin mumbled, looking down at the ground. A tension seemed to rise and fall in different tunes and waves. Merlin kneaded his hands nervously.

"Really?" Arthur challenged aggressively. Merlin looked caught off guard, staring at Arthur.

"I-" just as Merlin was about to reply, when Elyan leaned down over the edge of the cliff, a delirious smile on his face,

"Come on guys! Merlin made us food! I'm not what it is but it's good!" He chuckled, hauling himself back up. Merlin looked down gratefully as everyone was reminded by their stomachs. Only Gwaine was accepting of Merlin's answer, though suspicion was thriving with the others. Merlin walked to the stone, placing both hands on it. Muttering his spell, he pushed hard into the stone, and a moan split the air as the rock shifted. A clicking and a harsh scrape was heard, then the rock shook, panels separating and sliding out to form steps all the way to the top. Merlin sighed heavily, gulping air before recovering. Wobbly, he started to climb the steps, the knights following in a dazed wonder,

"You never cease to amaze me." Percy sniggered. Merlin waved a hand tiredly, leaning against a stone spire as they sat at the table, looking at it in disbelief.

"Staring at it won't fill your stomachs." Merlin pointed out. Gradually, they ate; still uneasy about their discovery they made about Merlin, but they could tell he what he said could be possibility. Merlin may have something to do with the fact they weren't eating in an uncomfortable silence. So, they laughed, told tales that everyone already knew but enjoyed anyway, things of the sort. Merlin watched, trying to calm the anxiety in his stomach for the scars being found. Some of the scars were really from the dragon, trying to get out, but the others… made his shiver to think about. He could usually hide them with magic, but he had let his guard down; something he won't do again.

As they finished eating, Merlin took the plates and placed them in a bucket to wash later. Sure, he could have done it with magic, but sometimes he wanted to pretend everything was normal again. He only way she could direct them is if she had the Egg… but no, Merlin's father had hidden that very well. Not even he, the previous Dragon Lord, could get it again. Merlin could, he supposed… but he didn't know where it was and didn't want to. _We really have to get this a moving before we can get Arthur's regiment. If there not bound… they wont be able to take the defenses._ Merlin should really tell Arthur about that dome surrounding the area they were at, and only that wyverns and dragons could pass through it. Any other creature would be incinerated before they could get close. But is they were bound… the wyverns could mask their humanity with their drake relations. Merlin walked to the table, instantly grabbing everybody's attention. That wouldn't have happened if they were in Camelot.

"I've been thinking about your regiment and the _Sewrt_. Firstly, for the regiment, there's a barrier surrounding them, one that only wyverns and dragons can pass through. Though, since Gwaine is bound, he could pass through it. As you know, I've wanted to bind each of you to a wyvern." He took a deep breath, slightly nervous under the strong gazes. They knew about the binding but they didn't want to bind. He could understand that, but it hurt his feelings, to be honest.

"Unfortunately, you wouldn't be able to get your regiment without binding. Sure, I can send a small flock of wyverns to get them, but how do you think that would go over with them? They would try to kill them and my wyverns might have to defend themselves before they can flee."

"Why didn't you tell us of this barrier before?! You know what, never mind that. So, your saying the only way to get those men is to bind with your wyverns? How are we supposed to get them out, even if they accept our binding? Are they supposed to get on their backs and fly out?! You know they won't do that!" Arthur said, rather loudly. Before Merlin could reply, a wyvern flew by, landing on their shelf, scraping along as she crawled her way toward them. She was bleeding and smoke came from burns all over her body. Embers seemed to burn at the edges of her wings, eating the flesh, and her horns were snapped and bleeding. She was missing an eye and part of her back foot was gone. Merlin rushed to her side as she collapsed, groaning and hissing and the occasional growl of pain escaped her chipped teeth.

"_Wer tykk harr sferateettey wed yekortee?_(What happened? Who did this to you?)_"_ Merlin asked, cradling her head, despite the blackish blood staining his hands. She looked at him with her one orange eye, such profound sadness and loss in it. The knights surrounded them, still a distance away, but still there.

"_Uuhhg, o-o-opewess. Meine swech… k-kerreker_ ( Man… My life… o-offspring…)" She hissed. Sure enough, when Merlin looked, her belly was swollen. Merlin clutched his mouth as he felt the little lives in her dim with her.

"_Tewer… _(please…)" It had been a very, very long time since a wyvern was pregnant.

"K-Kilgharrah!" Merlin yelled in a panic. He had been watching, and already knew what was going to happen. He rested next to the wyvern, trying to ease her pain with his presence.

"_Weq hasuse _( who did this?)" He asked again, for more information. She took a rattling breath, her eye dropping,

_"Resed tew… iop… iahd sarw…_( The men… in… that dome…)" She took a final breath, and stomach started to glow. Merlin could hear her heart beat slow, and the twins inside her roll around in their eggs. She had died, but her eggs were surviving for a little longer. Merlin moved to her side, reaching to lay his hands on her stomach. He pressed them in, the golden light seeping and rapping around his hands as he grasped the eggs. Extracting them, two oval shaped, soft eggs dimmed in his hands.

_"Weter har_." He said, calling another female. He nursed the eggs with his magic, filling them like batteries. As the female came to a trotting stop on the stone, she couldn't tear her eyes away from the dead wyvern. When she saw the eggs, she understood, laying down on her side. Merlin pushed the eggs in side, and blessed them both.

"As soon as they're born, call me." Merlin said in English. She understood some English, so she nodded and flew off to inform her mate. As Merlin looked at the body, her body. She was mother, but her children were never born, and that other wyvern is a mother, but she was never pregnant.

"She said Arthur's men killed her." Kilgharrah whispered, betrayal sparking his golden eyes.

"I. Know." Merlin said through clenched teeth. As he stood from his sitting position, he morphed into the black dragon. Without even looking at anybody, Merlin spread his large wings and took off.

"What happened?!" A knight asked frantically. Kilgharrah swung his large head to theirs, his emotions evident.

"Your _men_ killed a mother. The first mother in a long, long time. This is unforgiveable. I suggest you leave before Merlin gets back." He hissed, glaring at them. Ket had been watching, and he was feeling exactly the same rage. It rebounded across his link and filled Gwaine with similar emotion; this reminded him of Gwaine.

"What of Gwaine?!" Ket asked frantically. Kilgharrah looked at him with hate, but nodded.

"He may stay; his isn't human anymore."

**Don't hate me! Though for what… I don't know. It felt awkward to right this, for some reason. Anyway, tell me Whatcha think, but don't be rude about it! I don't know where this came from, but i feel like it'll move the story along, since its kinda been stuck. Actually... i may end this in a couple chapters and reopen it with a sequel...**


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